Film Openings

Film Openings tend to last 2 minutes long and are the starting of the film. The film opening conventionally include the title of the film, the name of the cast,the introduction of the some actors, the distrubution and production logo and the name of the director. Here I will be talking about two film openings The Departed (2006) and Bridemaids (2011) these two films are of very different genre telling me the difference between how different genre's are portrayed.

The Departed (2006) 

 

Screen shots from the opening of The Departed

 

The Departed film opening is an excellent example of a film opening with all the conventions present as well as showing the genre of the film perfectly. The opening starts off with the typical film distrubution logo than production logo. We than see the names of the director and producer. We than get staright to the action of the film with the soundtrack of the film starting as well as the voiceover  by one of the films main characters; actor Jack Nicholson. The soundtrack helps the get in the modd of the film as well as inform them about the genre of the film. The soudtrack as well the voiceover gives a sinister feel to the film addinhg to the feel of terror linking well in with the crime thriller genre. While the diegectic and non-diegetic sound play in the background the shots shown are that of gang violence, protests and police officers. The images help instill what the narrative will about in the audiences mind; defnitely something to do with breaking law. The opening starts of with a establishing shot showing where the film is set than a mix of shots are shown they are either mid shots or wide shots and random close ups of certain characters in the film. This adds to the enigma of the narrative as well tells the genre to the audience again if they still have not realised what the genre is. The sound and camera shots set the mood. The editing and mise-en-scene help enhance it. The editing of this clips helps succesfully cement the opening in the audiences mind. The shorts takes that are used helps the actions of the film speed up therefore adding to the already developing dramatic effect the opening has. However around 1 minute intio the clip I see that when a man is talking a long take is used to slow down the dramatic action. This is done to make th audince feel umcomfortable, making them think something entirely unexpected may happen which is done to create enigma in the narrative. The mise-en-scene is very dark and sinister again hinting at the genre to the audience. The lighting is is a mix of high key and low key however with more low key lighting to add to the dangerous modd that is set since the start of the film opening. The colours that you see are dark colours such as blacks, greys and hints of yellows. This connotes the violence and dark genre the film has. The film being a crime thriller genre is typical of the way is portrayed, however the audience may not know how to react with the speed of the opening and how it is shown. Overall the film opening for The Departed is a groundbreaking effort in itself outlining the genre from the very first scene till the end of the opening promising the audience what is still to come in the film as you watch. The opening heavily emphasise's on the crime thriller genre never missing a beat to set the mood and creating a sense of terror in the audiences mind.

 

Bridesmaids (2011) 

 



Screen shots from the opening of Bridesmaids



 

In contrast to The Departed the film opening for Bridemaids is highly different. The film is a female driven comedy, straightaway informing the audience it is a female cast. The film again, conventionally starts off with the the distrubution and production logo. The film even though being an independent film is distrubuted by Universal Pictures which is a good start for a 'independent film'. The opening starts of very unusually with the main character having sex with a man which starightaway will either intrigue the audiences interest in the film or make them feel uncomfortable. The sound used is all diegetic sounds no non-diegetic sound is used throughout the film opening. The camera shots and mise-en-scene is significant in making the film opening effective. An wide shot instead of a establishing shot which is commonly used in a film opening, is used where a expensive house is shown showing the affluence and wealth of the person who owns the house.

The audience  is invited into the bedroom because the camera comes from outside to a cut, into the room on the right the camera zooms in towards the door then there is another cut into the bedroom. Moreover the audience is prepared for what they are going to see through sound, as you can hear the woman and the man making sexual noises however they are from a comedic angle and you are not shown anything too disturbing or inappropriate so your imagination is what does most of the work.

Compared to The Departed, Bridemaids is portrayed very contrastingly due to the very different genre's of the films.

 

Posted by Bansari Raval